AABR CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) UPDATES

4/14/20 – AABR Featured in Another NBC NY Story

Seven developmentally delayed residents of a Queens group home are mourning the death of their joyful, 56-year-old housemate who loved Barbie dolls.

The woman, identified by her first name Dulcette, is one of 156 disabled group home residents who have died after testing positive for COVID-19, according to the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities, or OPWDD.

“One of the hardest things was explaining to them that this individual will not be coming home,” said Esan Torrington, facility manager for the John and Marie Bladt residence in Flushing, where Dulcette lived. – CONTINUE TO FULL STORY

4/9/20 – Status Update and Call to Action

We’ve learned that Congress may begin drafting a fourth COVID-19 package as early as this week. I have been in touch with Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio- Cortez advocating for additional funding to support agencies like ours and the Disability communities across this nation for additional funding from the next stimulus package to be delivered directly to providers. Please read the attached sheet to see how you can help.

Stay well, Libby Traynor, LCSWExecutive Director

CALL TO ACTION

To get this message heard, we need
your help!

We
are supporting the NY Alliance for Inclusion and Innovation and the American
Network of Community Options and Resources’ (ANCOR) joint effort to send a
message to our representatives to let them know that they need to address the
continuing challenges in disability support during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Time
is of the essence, so we ask that you take the below steps TODAY:
1. Copy the below message. Feel free to modify it to your own voice if you’d
like. Ex. “Where I work” “Where my son/daughter receives services.”
2. Click this link to go to the ANCOR website
3. Click under Message Body on the right side of your page and paste your
message.
4. Fill in your contact info.
5. Hit send.

And,
if you’d like, please forward this email to your friends and family and ask
them to do the same thing!

COPY BELOW:
AABR is an
organization at the epicenter of the COVID pandemic in Queens, NY where 68% of
our disabled individuals tested positive for COVID 19 in our congregate care
settings. 20% of our HERO DSP staff are essential health care workers have also
tested positive. Emergency enhanced rates are needed immediately to cover the
cost of caring for our individuals in their homes as opposed to sending them to
the overburdened NYC hospitals. WE BEG for your attention to this matter. NY is
the leader in Disability Advocacy. Lead this nation in this pandemic on how
they will be treated now. KEEP THE NY PROMISE to these individuals and
families! Please keep in mind essential Medicaid disability supports as you
prepare a fourth COVID-19 package. While I am grateful that the CARES Act
contained provisions such as reimbursing front line staff’s time supporting
people with disabilities during hospital stays, the coronavirus’ impact is
growing exponentially and continues to disrupt key community supports that are
keeping people with disabilities healthy and safe at home. Including funding
for the following purposes in any forthcoming COVID-19 package will ensure
these supports’ survival:

(1) Sustain
the operations of Medicaid-funded disability service providers.

(2) Prevent
the closure of disability programs.

(3)
Supercharge staff stabilization, retention, and recruitment.

The American
Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR) can provide you with more
detailed suggestions. Please contact Sarah Meek, ANCOR’s Senior Director of
Legislative Affairs, at smeek@ancor.org for more
information.

Thank you
again for your hard work during this crisis.

3/31/20 – Continuing to Fight This Pandemic on Many Fronts

Much has occurred since our last update. AABR is
continuing to fight this pandemic on many fronts. I want to reiterate that we
are doing everything in our power to keep our individuals and staff safe as we
move forward during this global pandemic.

Our Personal Protective Equipment shipment has
arrived and has been distributed. Our gowns should be arriving shortly. All our
residences have the other necessary equipment to keep safe. I am especially
grateful that we acted quickly to secure the necessary PPE for our staff early.
The reports of shortages of PPE in NYC healthcare settings is devastating. I
thank all of you who sourced, donated and assisted in our battle to ensure the
safety of our staff.

As the news reports indicate, AABR individuals and courageous
staff have been significantly and directly affected by COVID. Many are
asymptomatic, many have recovered, while others are fighting the illness. For
those that are ill, we offer you our prayers for your speedy recovery. Your
AABR family is here for you. It’s impossible for us to express the level of
gratitude we have for every staff member who has stepped up during this crisis
to care for our individuals.

As this virus has spread, the guidance from our
state partners has quickly changed. The strategy for ‘contact tracing and
containment’ has moved to one of ‘community spread’. This change has a
significant impact on how AABR is operating. Just a few short days ago, under
the containment strategy, we were able to get testing performed through the
drive-through sites and/or a DOH nurse collecting samples directly from our
facilities. Now, testing is only being provided if you are presenting
significant symptoms. AABR is no longer able to arrange for testing for our
sites or our staff. If you are ill and need to get tested, you need to go to
your health care provider to get testing. At this time, we are unaware of any
other avenues to get testing.

There have been changes to protocols from OPWDD to modifying training, the return to work for essential employees and direct support staff who have tested positive or who have had a known exposure to COVID-19. AABR is following all protocols. All guidance is available on the OPWDD website and on our website for easy reference.

Our Day Program staff are now assigned to our
residences to support our individuals with the continuity of care to meet their
service plan goals. Staff is being transported by our AABR drivers to outer-borough
locations in efforts to limit staff exposure on public transportation.

Thanks to the hard work of our selfless staff, we
have made tremendous strides throughout this pandemic. We must keep up our
resolve under these extraordinary circumstances. I cannot reiterate enough;
staff must maintain full compliance in the proper use of PPE and prevention
measures in the residences to wipe out this virus from the AABR sites. Please
strictly adhere to all safety protocols for yourselves, our individuals and our
community.

I know these are difficult times and many of you
have expressed concerns. Please remember the SPARKS program is available for
staff who need additional support and our Human Resources team is available to
answer any of your questions. Our individuals need you more than ever. Be
healthy and stay safe. We will get through this together.

Sincerely,Libby Traynor, LCSWExecutive Director

3/27/20 – AABR on NBC FOLLOW UP“OUR FINANCIAL CRISIS”

Last week NBC NY aired a story about us focused on our difficulties acquiring Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and how the City told us that we fell below their priority level. Thank you to those of you who reached out with leads and support afterward. After that story and the one on CNN.com, we heard from the Governor’s office, and they supplied enough PPE to bridge the gap until our shipment came from overseas.

With our PPE fire put out, for now, NBC followed up with us last night and discussed our new troubles. First and foremost, 55 individuals and 29 members of our staff have tested positive for COVID-19. The remaining healthy members of our staff, along with many temporary workers, now shielded with PPE, are working very long hours in difficult circumstances and doing everything they can to care for those with more mild symptoms in our care. Sadly, there are some individuals whose conditions have worsened beyond our abilities, and we are putting our faith and trust into the doctors caring for them.

On top of this, the state recently enacted a rate cut, which is costing us $150,000 a week. Add this to the astronomical cost of PPE, staff overtime, and temporary hires, we are now facing a financial crisis. We will continue to find ways to make ends meet, but we need your help. We understand that this virus has led to a lot of lost income for many people. However, if you are one of the fortunate ones who can afford to give, we ask you to please think about our individuals and make a generous donation.

3/21/20 – Our fight to get PPEs for our Staff and Individuals featured on CNN and NBCNY

We’ve been told by the NYC Office of Emergency Management that we “fall below the priority level to receive PPE.” So we have taken our fight to keep our staff and individuals protected to the national and local news.CNN and NBCNY have both been kind enough to share our story.

3/20/20 – Update from AABR Executive Director on Continued Tests and Steps Taken After Positive Results

We wanted to update
and assure you that we are doing everything in our power to keep our
individuals and staff safe as we move forward during this global pandemic.

We have had more than one person test positive for COVID-19.
When an individual shows any signs or symptoms, they are immediately taken for
testing. We are not waiting for results; we are then taking the rest of the
residents and staff in the home for testing as well. We are checking temperatures
twice daily and requiring staff to take their temperature prior to entering any
residence. Staff and individuals are using masks to prevent spread, and we are
constantly cleaning high touch surfaces.

We understand that just because someone isn’t showing signs,
doesn’t mean they aren’t infected. The moment we learned that the drive-through
testing sites had opened, with approval from NYS DOH, we organized busses of
staff and individuals to get testing. We are also working with NYS Department
of Health on getting nurses to come to our facilities to provide on-site
testing. We hope this will be operational soon. We wish we could tell you that
every result has been negative; unfortunately, they weren’t. Some individuals
had to remain in hospitals while they recovered. The good news is that some
individuals who did test positive are now ready to come home.

When an individual is ready to leave the hospital, we will keep
them a safe distance from others. Individuals will be brought back to their
residences so that they can remain in a place they know and feel comfortable,
while also being with familiar staff who know their daily needs. They will be
placed in an isolated living area away from all the other individuals. Staff
will be supplied with all the necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
needed to care for individuals with COVID19, including gloves, goggles, masks,
and gowns. We are following the medical protocols provided to us by the NYS DOH
to care for our individuals and staff safely.

As you’ve undoubtedly read in the news, PPE supplies have become
scarce in hospitals, nursing homes, and in all health care facilities.
Currently, we have sufficient supplies. While we have enough, for now, many
items like gloves and masks are for single-use only. So, supplies dwindle
quickly. We’re working with our government partners, as well as independently,
to make sure we have enough of these pivotal items to last us for however long
this may go on.

However, we cannot wait for the government to help. We have sought out our own supplier and have a shipment en route to arrive late next week from overseas. This has come at a great financial expense. An expense we did not hesitate for a minute to spend because no price can be placed on our individual’s or staff’s safety. We have set up a donation page to help us offset our increased COVID19 expenses. It can be found at www.aabr.org/covid19.

While this has certainly not been an easy time, I thank the kind-hearted, courageous, and hardworking staff who continue to show up for our individuals. Many are tired, some are scared, yet they continue to be on the front lines caring for our most vulnerable friends

Sincerely, Libby Traynor, LCSWExecutive Director

3/16/20 – Update from AABR Executive Director on Positive Tests

It has come to our attention that individuals receiving Day Program Services at Wellington Hall have tested positive for COVID 19. Upon learning of the positive results, AABR immediately closed the program.

Currently, no one from St. Pascals Day Program has tested positive. We recognize that many of our individuals share bussing and staff and residences. Therefore, after seeking guidance from OPWDD and NYS DOH, out of an abundance of caution, we are closing our St. Pascal’s program as well. We are doing all we can to ensure the health and safety of all our individuals and staff during this crisis and to mitigate any contagion.

Wellington Hall Day Program and St. Pascals Day Program and Chances will be closed until 3/29/2020. At this time, we plan on reopening on 3/30/20, pending approval from OPWDD and the NYS DOH. For staff, this period of time will be paid.

In addition, The NYC Department of Education has closed all schools. Therefore, the New York Child Learning Institute has closed as well. The teachers at NYCLI are preparing curriculum for at-home learning for students and creating distance learning plans to support our students and families during this time of crisis.

We have requested from NYS DOH that all staff and individuals who may have been potentially exposed be tested. Once we receive approval and a plan from NYS DOH, we will assist in facilitating this testing.

Personal Protective Equipment has been requested to NYS DOH to distribute to our programs.

All non-essential medical appointments will be rescheduled as directed by the nursing staff. All canceled medical appointments will be tracked and rescheduled for a later date.

ALL staff and individuals will be monitored twice daily for temperature and symptoms. In addition, the staff is currently being screened prior to entering the residence at the start of a shift.

There will be no visitors to any of our locations. Staff can arrange video messaging for family members to virtually ‘visit’ their family members living in our residences.

We are preparing to close our Main Office to have staff work remotely. Communications and computer access are currently being readied.

The Community Habilitation program will remain open under the following guidelines: • Prior to the visit, AABR staff will phone the family to screen that no individuals are experiencing symptoms. • AABR staff will be required to wear face masks when working with individuals in their homes. • AABR staff will enter the home wearing a face mask and immediately wash their hands. • If staff or families are uncomfortable with these provisions, services can be suspended until such time as we are ready to resume regular service. • If face masks are not available, AABR staff will not be able to enter Individuals homes.

We are living in uncertain times, but that does not mean we have to live in fear. The staff of AABR are prepared, well trained, professional, and dedicated. We are problem solvers and adaptable. I believe in each and every staff person. Together we will navigate this crisis. If you have not visited our website www.aabr.org/coronavirus, please do so and add your email address to our registry for continued updates.

Sincerely,Libby Traynor, LCSWExecutive Director

3/12/20 – Update from AABR Executive Director

Your health and safety remain our highest priority! We just want
to again assure you that we at AABR are staying informed and are receiving
guidance from OPWDD, NYC and State Departments of Health and the CDC. We are
closely following their recommendations. We are taking preventive measures,
specific to our agency and population, to protect our employees, individuals
and learners to maintain a healthy work environment.

As of today, there are NO plans to close
facilities or services.

We have updated our website www.aabr.org to include a section for COVID 19
information and communication. Please visit our website for important updates
and links to relevant information.

We have increased our cleaning efforts in each
of our residences and our vendor has completed and/or scheduled deep cleaning
and disinfecting of the main offices, NYCLI, Weldon Hall, Wellington Hall and
Chances sites. Our own facility staff are continuously sanitizing high touch
areas of each facility throughout the day.

We have been in touch with all our vendors and
suppliers to ensure our facilities are stocked with necessary items.

Staff have received training and guidance in our action plan including:

Scheduled and
documented facility cleaning and restocking of cleaning supplies;

Routine
handwashing of our individuals and hand over hand washing for those individuals
that require assistance;

What to do if any
individual or staff member at any time appears ill or is experiencing unusual
behavior for them;

Communication
plans for reporting sick individuals and staff persons;

Isolation
procedures for ill staff or individuals;

Daily temperature and symptom check of individuals and
monitoring of new fever and/or respiratory illness;

Screening visitors in advance and upon arrival
for fever or signs of an acute respiratory illness (see official guidance from
OPWDD and NYC DOH on our website at www.aabr.org );

Limiting
community inclusion to activities where large groups are not prevalent;

Social Distancing including but not limited
to:

Limiting the number of people in congregate area’s to under 20 people

Arranging beds so
that individual lay head to toe (or toe-to-toe)

Staggering meal
times.

Reducing the size
of group activities.

We continue to practice general infection control techniques and
are assisting people we support in doing the same by:

• Promoting proper hand-washing techniques;

• Providing hand sanitizer;

• Covering one’s mouth and nose with a tissue
or sleeve when coughing or sneezing;

• Redirecting everyone from touching their
eyes, nose or mouth.

We request that if anyone feels sick or manifests symptoms of
illness – coughing, sneezing, shortness of breath, fever – they should stay
home and call their doctor.

We ask that all visitors to any of our facilities/programs who may
not feel well and have any symptoms of illness DO NOT visit. All
visitors will be screened prior to entrance to any of our facilities. If
people visit and are showing symptoms, they will be turned away.

We do not want to offend anyone, but all people entering one of
our programs will be asked to wash their hands or use hand sanitizer upon
arrival.

As always, our priority is the health and safety of all members of
the AABR community.

Sincerely, Libby Traynor, LCSWExecutive DirectorAABR, Inc.

3/11/20 – DEEP CLEANINGS SCHEDULED

Please be aware that the following sites will be cleaned using CDC recommended disinfectant products in our diligence to prevent illness in our sites.

Main Office- Thursday night – 3/12/2020

St. Pascals – The weekend of 3/14-3/15

Wellington Hall- The weekend of 3/14-3/15

3/11/20 – CDC: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FACT SHEET

3/2/20 – MESSAGE FROM AABR REGARDING CORONAVIRUS

We have all been watching the Coronavirus (COVID-19)
epidemic unfold around the world and new information becomes available every
day. We felt that is was important at this time to reach out to all of you and
let you know that we are monitoring the situation very closely, along with our
local Department of Health and the Office for People with Developmental
Disabilities (OPWDD). We receive ongoing guidance and information as to
infection control protocols from these entities and will ensure swift
implementation of any and all recommendations. Our emergency preparedness plans
are currently being updated to include all guidance available to date and will
continue to be updated as new information becomes available.

Since the virus is very new, health authorities continue to
carefully watch how this virus spreads. The Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) is working hard to learn as much as possible about this new
virus, so that we can better understand how it spreads and causes illness. The
CDC considers this virus to be a serious public health concern and have made
travel recommendations that can be found at:
https://wwnc.cdc.gov/travel/notices/warning/novel-coronavirus-china.

We want to be very clear that we are acting in an abundance
of caution and have absolutely no reason to suspect that staff or people who
receive supports and services from AABR are at risk at the moment. Agency-wide
training on general infection control precautions including the most important step
in infection prevention, which is frequent handwashing, will be reinforced at
all agency locations.

At this time, it is important to listen to facts and not respond to fear. Currently, there is only one confirmed case in New York City, who is a patient under quarantine, and the risk to New Yorkers remains low. Therefore, there is no need to cancel regular activities or social events and there is no need for staff or people to wear surgical masks, unless otherwise directed by a healthcare professional.

Prevention

The NYS DOH
recommends the following ways to minimize the spread of all respiratory
viruses, including the Coronavirus:

Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.

Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

Stay home when you are sick.

Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve (not your hands) when coughing or sneezing. If you use a tissue, throw it in the trash.

Information
to date suggests that the Coronavirus causes mild-to-moderate illness and
symptoms like the flu, including fever, cough and difficulty breathing. Please
ensure prompt reporting of symptoms of people supported, as evaluation by their
health care provider will be critical. Staff should also seek the advice of
their health care provider should they have any symptoms.

The best outcomes always come from thorough preparation, especially when it concerns the health and safety of the people who we support and our workforce. We also believe in sharing pertinent information with all of you as it becomes available and will continue to do so as the need arises. We will continue to monitor the situation and will act at the direction of public health experts.

Like everyone else, the individuals are spending a lot of time at home, but they are still keeping busy. Here's some of the beautiful placemats they made with with assistance of our incredible staff. #opwdd #disabilities #nycopwdd #nysopwdd #specialneeds

Thank you Nurses for what you’ve done, what you do and for all the incredible things you will do in the future. #NursesWeek #NursesWeek2020 #NurseAppreciationWeek #iacny #opwdd #nysopwdd #nycopwdd #autism #specialneeds #developmentaldisabilities

AABR stands with organizations across the city, state, and the country in saluting the selfless work of our nurses. Thank you, nurses, for your courage, heart, and selflessness. http://aabr.org/nurseappreciation #NursesWeek #NursesWeek2020 #opwdd #autism #specialneeds #nycopwdd #nysopwdd